Fight Bigamy

Serial bigamist, Charles Edward Hicks (aka Ed Hicks, Charles Green, Billy Matthews) is a wanted fugitive again. If you see this man, please contact the authorities.

The look and feel have changed. Just search on what you are looking for within the blog!

Serial bigamist Charles Edward Hicks has a new name

Charles Edward Hicks a.k.a. Charles Green has another alias to add to his list. Serial bigamist Hicks now goes by the name of Billy Matthews. However his driver’s license shows Charles Eddie Hicks from Casselberry, FL.

He says he is living on a sailboat in Key Largo, but his driver’s license says Cassleberry, FL, which is five hours away. He drives an old, beat-up, brown Toyota Corolla station wagon.

He was prowling on a Christian dating site known as “Love and Seek”. His email address is [email protected]

He is still giving women the same old lines (read all articles regarding 'Ed Hicks Missives' and 'Ed Hicks News' to the far left).

If he pursues you, run…FAST.

VA bigamist facing charges in 3 of his 4 marriages

Isaac C. Custalow Jr. has been arrested three times on felony charges of bigamy in less than a year., and has accumulated four wives in 11 years without divorcing any of them. The Chesterfield County man is only now beginning to feel the consequences, as authorities in three Virginia localities line up to prosecute him.

In less than a year, Custalow has been arrested three times on felony charges of bigamy — in Chesterfield,  Henrico County and Virginia Beach — as authorities unraveled a tangle of marriages to women who in most cases were much younger than he.

Custalow's Sept. 20, 2010, indictment in Chesterfield led to similar charges on July 26 in Virginia Beach and then on Sept. 12 in Henrico Countyh, his latest charge. He pleaded guilty April 12 to the Chesterfield offense and was set to be sentenced Wednesday but failed to show up because of an apparent medical problem.

One of his four wives committed suicide last year — about a year after Custalow married her — and left behind a note about how he had mistreated her, prosecutors say.

With marriages to four women at once, Custalow is the area's most prolific accused bigamist since a former Richmond man was arrested nearly 20 years ago after leaving behind a trail of jilted wives in Virginia and at least three other states.

In that case, the man's Richmond wife learned of his other wives after they appeared together on a nationally syndicated television program in November 1991. Jerry Wayne Montgomery, a Kentucky native who worked as a mechanic, was arrested four months later.

Unlike that earlier case, Custalow apparently didn't dupe his many wives for financial gain — he just left them when the marriage soured and didn't bother divorcing before marrying again, authorities said.

"Every time he married somebody, he was still married previously to one or more people," said Macie Pridgen, a spokeswoman for the Virginia Beach Commonwealth's Attorney's Office. "A lot of times with these marriages they just fizzle out, and they don't officially divorce and later get married again."

"It's just awful," said Jolynn Nassar whose daughter, Shannon Denton, was the latest woman to marry Custalow, on July 1 in Virginia Beach. "He's wrecked the whole family."

Custalow was under indictment on a bigamy charge in Chesterfield when he married Denton.

A few weeks after the couple married, Denton received a call from Chesterfield Police who advised her that her marriage was invalid because he was still married to a Chesterfield woman, Pridgen said.

Nassar said she confronted her son-in-law  after learning he had multiple wives.

"I talked to him, and he didn't tell me it was four times — he said it was three times. But one of them had died last year."

When Nassar said she pressed Custalow about why he got married so many times without getting a divorce, he didn't explain why. But he offered: "I'm going to get this taken care of."

Nassar said her daughter met Custalow when she was in Richmond visiting friends.

"My daughter just fell for him," she said. "She didn't know that he was married" three times before.

Nassar said her daughter and Custalow separated for about a month after Denton learned of his other marriages, but they eventually got back together again. "And now he's up there living with her again," Nassar said. "It's unbelievable."

A message left for Denton  at her Virginia Beach workplace was not returned. Custalow, who has been released on bond, couldn't be located for comment. His attorney in the Chesterfield case, Russell Bowles, declined to talk about the matter.

According to copies of Custalow's marriage certificates in his court file in Chesterfield, he first married a Midlothian woman in Chesapeake  on Oct. 16, 2000. While still married to her, Custalow exchanged vows with a Chesterfield woman in Henrico on July 17, 2008. Just over a year later, Custalow married a third woman, from Colonial Heights, in a civil ceremony in Hopewell on July 22, 2009.

Less than two years later, he married Nassar's daughter in Virginia Beach.

All the women except Denton were 24 when they married Custalow, who was 30, 37, and 39, respectively. He was 41 when he married Denton, 38.

Chesterfield prosecutor, B.J. McGee said Custalow was married a fifth time — in the late 1990s — but that marriage ended in a legal divorce.

Custalow is now set to be sentenced Nov. 28 in Chesterfield Circuit Court. State sentencing guidelines included in his case file call for a minimum prison term of 10 months and a maximum of two years and 10 months.

His trial in Henrico is set for Dec. 1. He is scheduled to appear Dec. 6 in Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court om the case involving Denton.

Custalow also is scheduled to stand trial Oct. 20 on grand larceny and drug possession counts in the Chesterfield Circuit Court.

He has been charged with more than a dozen crimes in Chesterfield over the past three years, offenses that include petty larceny, possession of controlled substances, breaking and entering, stalking, assault and prescription fraud. But the majority of those charges were eventually withdrawn. He was found guilty only of assault, aside from his recent bigamy conviction.

Bigamy is a Class 4 felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $100,000.

By Mark Bowes of The Richmond Times Dispatch.

Angela Christensen Accused of Having Three Husbands ... at the same time

She's accused of having three husbands at the same time, but her attorney tells WAVE 3 News that the case should be cleared in less than a month.

The Commonwealth Attorney's Office claims 39-year-old Angela Christensen is married to men in two other states, as well as man in a recent marriage in Kentucky.

"I think my client has been hounded. I think it's a vendetta, I don't think the proper investigation has been done," said Defense Attorney Robert Bishop.

He says a document was just signed after her arrest, ordering a marital records office in New York to verify her marital status there.

"We will, at the appropriate time, provide documentation of a decree of dissolution of one marriage and the decree of annulment of the other marriage, both prior to the present marriage with Mr. Ferguson," Bishop said.

Christensen appeared for her arraignment Friday morning and is free on bond. Her attorney wouldn't allow her to talk to WAVE 3 News.

Officials say her marital status came into question when she married a man in Hardin County last month while they claim she was also married to men in Texas and New York.

Despite that, her attorney expects the case to wrap up at the next court date on September 12.

"Continuation past production of these documents would only damage the Commonwealth," Bishop said.

From WAVE3.com

FL Man Doesn't Remember Marrying First Wife

A Vero Beach man was arrested on a bigamy charge Tuesday after authorities said they found court documents showing that he was married to two women at the same time.

Indian River County Sheriff's Office detectives began an investigation after a judge presiding over a domestic hearing injunction on behalf of Aaron Richardson discovered two marriage licenses -- one to Arkina Sneed in 2004 and Irene Clark last year.

Sneed told detectives she married Richardson in October 2010 at the county courthouse but didn't know he was still married to Clark. Sneed said she wouldn't have married him if she knew he was still married.

Detectives said they then interviewed Richardson, who denied ever being married to Clark.

According to the arrest warrant, Richardson said he was in prison being treated for a physiological problem and was taking medication for it. Richardson said he started dating Clark after he got out of prison, but he didn't remember getting married to her.

Clark told detectives she was aware that Richardson had married someone else.

From WPBF.com

Fighting Bigamy in Oklahoma

Bigamy is a familiar topic to 1997 Mustang High School graduate Kristine Rice.

The issue hit close to home after she said one of her friends became a victim of bigamy, and now she is planning to spread information about the crime and is asking Canadian County residents to sign an online petition pressuring elected officials to take more action.

“By signing this you are stating that you do not believe that the elected officials of Canadian County Oklahoma have a ‘choice’ not to prosecute the Felony of Bigamy,” Rice said. “Bigamy is a serious social, family, and a felony crime problem in Canadian County. However, if one of the spouses files formal charges, our overloaded court systems should not dictate whether or not the criminal is brought to charges. Most victims of this crime do not report it because they are too embarrassed to go to the authorities. If this embarrassment is overcome, the victims that do report go completely unattended by the judicial system.”

Oklahoma §21-881 defines bigamy as, “Every person who having been married to another who remains living, marries any other person…”

Although not being impacted directly by bigamy herself, Rice said she became familiar with the issue after her friend became a victim.

Rice said the issue was brought before the Canadian County Assistant District Attorney, but not much was accomplished.

“My friend was working with the district attorney’s office to file formal charges and nothing was done,” she said. “The district attorney told her that he wasn’t going to prosecute unless she had a marriage certificate, which she didn’t have. But the state statute says you don’t need to have a marriage certificate to charge someone with bigamy, as long as you have sufficient evidence.”

Canadian County Assistant District Attorney Paul Hesse said bigamy is a rare charge.

“It’s not that we refused to prosecute,” Hesse said. “Our burden is to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that someone is guilty of the crime.”

Although the act of bigamy is a felony crime in Oklahoma, the process of marriage is severely flawed to prevent such crimes, Rice said.

“When applying for a marriage license in Oklahoma, the applicants sign attesting that they are able to marry one another,” she said. “Currently, there is no assurance to the ‘new’ spouse that this statement is not fraudulent. If the state maintained a centralized marriage registry, there would not be victims of bigamy.”

Rice said she hopes Oklahoma will be the first state to have some sort of database to keep track of such things.

In the meantime, Rice is asking Canadian County residents to request their elected District Attorney, Michael Fields, to uphold Oklahoma State Statutes for bigamy and fully prosecute those that commit the crime. She is seeking 10,000 signatures on an online petition.

“I will start going door to door in Canadian County and once I have received all of them, I will request a meeting with Michael Fields discussing the topic of bigamy and ask him for his support in the matter when charges are brought to him. The victims of bigamy should not be disregarded and this crime should not go unpunished when charges are sought.”

Earlier this week, Rice said word of her petition reached District Attorney Fields and he is now current reviewing her friend’s case.

Rice said she believes with today’s technology, crimes such as bigamy could easily be prevented.

“In today’s world with computers and the Internet, an online database could be reality and polygamy and bigamy wouldn’t even exist,” she said.

Sign or view Rice’s petition.

For more information on Rice’s cause, email [email protected].

From the Mustang Times

VA Man Sentenced 10 Years for Bigamy-9.5 Years Suspended

A Campbell County, VA man who admitted he married two women at the same time will spend six months behind bars.

On Wednesday, a judge sentenced Wesley Fulcher to 10 years in prison but suspended nine and a half. He will also have to pay a $10,000 fine and be on probation for 18 months.

Fulcher pleaded guilty to bigamy in February.  He said then that he thought his first marriage in 1983 was dissolved when he married an Evington woman 20 years later.

From WSET.com (note comment)

VA Woman Faces Up to 10 Years in Prison for Bigamy

A 71-year-old Gloucester, VA woman faces up to 10 years in prison when she's sentenced this week on a bigamy plea.

Shirley Smith-Smart is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday in Isle of Wight Circuit Court.

The defendant also is known as Shirley Inez Cassara.

She entered an Alford plea to a bigamy charge in January, admitting there is sufficient evidence for a court to find her guilty. In exchange, perjury and forgery charges were dropped.

The bigamy charge stems from the eighth of her ten marriages. Prosecutors say she was already married when she wed again.

From WAVY.com

Canadian Charged With Bigamy

A Canadian national, who married his second wife while still legally married to his first had his case committed to the High Court where he is facing one count of bigamy.

Richard Finnegan is also charged with giving false information to a person employed in the public service. His case was preceded by way of paper committal in the Magistrate’s Court this morning, Friday, January 28, 2011.

Mr. Finnegan legal woes began after it was discovered that he illegally married a second wife, while his first wife is still alive and residing overseas.

According to court records, he and his first wife were married in 2003 and lived together in the Virgin Islands until 2008. She now resides in British Columbia, Canada.

However, in February 2010, the 39 year-old applied for a license to tie the knot with his second wife, and on the document he stated he was never married.

But his first wife became aware of the marriage and made a report which resulted in Mr. Finnegan’s arrest.

He is currently on $25,000 bail with one signed surety and is represented by Attorney Stephen Daniels.

From The Virgin Island News Online

SC Man Wanted for Bigamy

Horry County, SC police are searching for a Conway man, who is suspected of being married to two women at the same time, Sgt. Robert Kegler said.

Vernon Robert Scoone, 65, is wanted for bigamy, Kegler said. Scoone has lived in the Garden City Beach and Conway communities of Horry County.

On Jan. 12, detectives began investigation into Scoone after allegations were made that he is married to two women at the same time, Kegler said. The investigation showed that on March 29, 2008, the defendant married a woman in Horry County after successfully applying for a marriage license.

Scoone, who was previously married, claimed to be a widower with a death certificate from Maryland when he applied for a marriage license in Horry County, Kegler said.

In May, Scoone’s second wife was suspicious about his first wife after she found documents that showed his first wife was alive, Kegler said. Detectives learned the death certificate used at the application process was forged, and the certificate number in Maryland actually came back to Scoone’s mother.

The name and other pertinent information on the document was replaced with his first wife’s information, Kegler said. It was further discovered that his first wife is alive and living in Maryland.

Anyone with information regarding Scoone’s whereabouts can call the Horry County Police Department at 915-5350.

By Tonya Root of the Sun-News

Lousiana Woman Accused of Having 3 Husbands at the Same Time

A Bossier City, LA woman was arrested Tuesday after a Bossier sheriff's office investigation found she had three husbands.

Bridget Mize, 35, of the 200 block of Adair Street, was taken into custody and charged with two counts of bigamy after her first two husbands contacted the sheriff's office, realizing neither had divorced Mize after their marriages ended.

Mize first married in Dallas County, Texas, in 1993. The union was abusive by Mize's accounts, and when she wanted out, her husband told her he took care of the paperwork, according to Bossier sheriff's spokesman Lt. Ed Baswell. Mize said she never saw papers. Because her first husband never filed for divorce, Mize still remains legally married to the man. She married again in Caddo in 2005. Baswell said Mize's second husband was arrested in Bossier City for his third DWI. Instead of divorcing him, Mize moved on.

Mize married for the third time in Columbia County, Arkansas, in 2007. Baswell said he doesn't believe Mize married multiple men out of malice or in search of gain, but did so because she was trying to lead a normal life under difficult circumstances.

He said the first case involved misplaced and misguided trust while the second had to do with her impoverished lifestyle.

Louisiana law prescribes a fine of not more than $1,000, or imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for not more than five years, or both in cases of bigamy.

By Adam Duvernay of the Shreveport Times